Welcome to Beijing's "Bird Nest" National Stadium where we'll follow the women's marathon on Olympic TV while you watch on NBC. The weather at 7:20, ten minutes before the start, is the best Beijing has to offer in August: overcast, not as humid as a week ago, temperature at 75 degrees. The clouds could break up to reveal the bright sun that Beijing has enjoyed the last three days, thought the runners wouldn't. And a low humidity Beijing August morning is still quite high humidity anywhere else.

The field is expected to have 82 starters, with 9 of those having lifetime bests under 2:22. They are: Zhou Chunxia, Gete Wami, Berhane Adere, Paula Radcliffe, Catherine Ndereba, Constantina Tomescu, Galina Gogomolova, Svetlana Zakharova and Deena Kastor. With defending chamipon Mizuki Noguchi out with an injury, the favorites are: Ndereba, Chunxia and Radcliffe.

Radcliffe is the intriguing question mark. She's won every marathon she has ever finished, but famously dropped out of the Athens Olympic Marathon four years ago. This season she's had everything go wrong, most seriously a left leg stress fracture that knocked her out of running training for nearly four months. She reportedly trained up to nine hours a day in the pool and on cross-training equipment. She also used the Alter-G Treadmill, which effectively reduces body weight and hence doesn't stress injuries as much as normal running.

However, to race 26.2 on hard asphalt, you need hard running with full body weight. Radcliffe has apparently had about two or three weeks of over-ground running. If she can medal in this marathon, her effort will surpass Joan Benoit's at the 1984 Olympic Marathon Trials, where Benoit won the race just 17 days after knee surgery. She was in great shape before the surgery, however. Radcliffe hasn't had that advantage.

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Officials are calling he runners to the start. Radcliffe was in cold vest. Surprising how few of the runners are wearing caps, but Deena's in a white one.

Paula in shades, no cap, nose strip, titanium necklace, and possibly flesh colored knee socks. We didn't get a good look.

They're off. Clean start from very wide avenue beside Tiananmen. Radcliffe and Chunxia were side by side. Not sure if we'll get splits to report or what. But splits are unimportant today. It's all about racing each other and the conditions. The pack is clearly jogging the first half mile, all together.

Strangely enough Radcliffe at the front. She's probably never run this slow in her life. Someone will get antsy at some point. They are approaching 800 meters, and it looks like the start of a big, easy long training run.

1K in 3:52. Everyone together very comfortable.

The jog continues. There's only one woman in the entire field who has dropped off the pack.

Just saw Deena at the very back of the pack at about 3K, oh now she's moving up on the inside. But she's going to play it cagey at this point. Liz Yelling of Great Britain is just ahead of Paula and others. Blake Russell and Madalena Lewy Boulet have been running up front too.

No more splits, sorry. I'm sure we'll get a 5K time. But again, it's meaningless. For now, this looks like a race of attrition. Though the pace will definitely have to pick up at some point.

Paula's wearing her red ribbon. Her protest against EPO and blood doping. She was vindicated just before the Games when a number of Russian women were booted out for highly suspicious blood tests.

Seeing Deena again at the back, running quietly, stealthily perhaps.

The Chinese women have moved up near the front, but aren't taking the pace or anything. No big moves yet.

Deena stops. Foot problem. Looks like she's going to be out. [ed. note: hours after the race the Kastor's agent Ray Flynn reported that x-ray results show Kastor has a broken right foot.]

Deena walking off course, not racing, will be a DNF. Limping badly. Wiping tears from face. Was feeling for something on right foot arch or midfoot.

5K pace was 18:24, that's about 2:35 marathon pace. That's slower than the actual conditions warrant. Someone will take off and fly at some point. Just a question of when.

Liz Yelling at the front now, and the pack forming into single file, so she has picked up. Paula lagging. But does it mean anything?

No, means nothing Pace slowing, pack reforming. It was just a breakup at the first water stop where there was confusion resulting from so many women so tightly packed.

Catherine Ndereba and the Japanese women are tucked back somewhere, invisible in the pack, saving themselves for later.

Magdelena Lewy Boulet well off the back of the pack, obviously having a very bad day. The pace would normally be training run pace for her.

9K in 32:40. We'll get a 10K split from the organizers next. Where there are crowds, look at the extreme Chinese organization and crowd control. There's a fence protecting the runners, then an empy "moat" space, then Chinese security keep the spectators back. They're about 10 meters from the runners. No slapping five here.

Two Chinese runners are side by side at the drinks table, one takes her drink. The two talk. But they're very careful not to share the drink.

10K of 36:12 so the second 5K was a little faster than the first, but nothing dramatic. There are now about 30 runners in what could be considered the lead pack, and Radcliffe, taller than the others, is visible towards the back. Australia's Benita Johnson is close to her.

Gotta love the leader from Lesotho: She has a 2:39 PR and she's ahead...oops, she just limped off the course.

Now she's running hard to get back into it. A few writers are going to latch onto this story after the race, that's for sure. Let's see if she can get back to the front?

Well, at least the nice slow motion photography of footfalls is showing that these women are heel strikers. Though light heel strikers, you can be sure.

It's Liz Yelling and Paula Radcliffe working at the front. The British fans must be going crazy. Well, Radcliffe has fans worldwide. USATF hasn't heard from Deena yet. They said her coaches are trying to find her to find out what happened. BBC reported that she felt something pop in her foot. She said that to a volunteer or bystander.

Parker Morse of IAAF and I have been looking for Catherine Ndereba. Finally spotted her. She's right where she wants to be, at the back of the lead pack, putting out as little effort as possible.

Leader's name is Mamorallo Tjoka. Go Mamo!

Nice water misters on the course. Here in the Stadium, it's still overcast and as cool as it gets. The course is flat. You can expect to see some hard running somewhere in the second half.

15K split of 53:52, last 5K in 17:42, again only slightly faster than previous. So far: 18:24, 17:46, 17:42.

The Lesotho runner is out again. That's Ndereba getting bumped at a water stop in the back and having to return for her drink.

Blake Russell on the outside in white cap.

Liz Yelling went down on a tough corner, pops back up and is moving around outside to get back up front. But bad scrapes on her back and right shoulder.

Tosa of Japan and Ndereba are running about 20 meters behind the main pack. Can't imagine why. Pace is so modest.

Constantina Tomescu in white cap blue singlet is known for forcing the pace hard at some point. She could be the one to go first. There's Nderba stalking and finding easy access to water this time. Smart maybe.

Tosa seems to have dropped back. That would leave a disappointed Japan, winner of the last two Olympic Marathons, with just one contender: Yurika Nakamura. She's in the pack with about 30 others.

Runners are at about 19K. We'll get a half marathon split in 7 minutes or so. Maybe that will be the psychological point where someone decides to launch a surge. Tomescu moving a little harder at the front now.

20K in 1:11:27, 17:35 again slightly faster than the previous 5K. But no one has started really running yet. They'll hit the half in about 1:15+.

I have a Deena Kastor quote. Will give it to you after the half marathon. Tomescu rips her cap off and starts working a little harder. They can't let her get too far away. She's too good. We see Radcliffe coming into the race from the sidelines. One of her pitstops?

Half marathon is 1:15:11. Tomescu has broken away, just notching down the pace a little. No one giving chase yet, but they won't let her get much of a gap. Radcliffe back in back of pack, should be able to inch up gradually.

Deena Kastor: "My foot has been sore for the past week. It didn't affect my training. It was tight during the race and then I felt a pop in my foot. I couldn't stand on it. I didn't expect to be finishing the marathon in a bus. We prepare forever for the marathon, and I had a sound race plan. I was excited to get out there and try to win another medal to make my country proud. As athletes, we have ups and downs. Unfortunately, you can't pick the days when they come on."

Tomescu has a best of 2:21:30 but is probably past her prime. She's running her typical aggressive race today, but it's highly unlikely to stand up.

Radcliffe is back with front of pack. Ndereba in same place 20 meters back. She's the ultimate marathon stalker. She got silver in Athens, and has only one goal in mind today.

Tomescu also known as Tomescu Dita has a 22 second lead. Don't be put off by her ragged running form. She can run like this all day long, and has proven her mettle in many major marathons.

In many of her great marathons, Radcliffe has run amazing negative splits races. That's surely what she's hoping for today. It's still early, but Tomescu has got to be making a few of the followers a bit nervous.

The trail pack, once 30 strong, now contains about 15 runners. Liz Yelling has dropped off. And Blake Russell no longer there.

Tomescu leads by 34 seconds at 25 K. The next group includes the expected Chinese, Ethiopians, Russians, Kenyans, and of course Radcliffe.

Tomescu ran her last 5K in 16:39, that's why she has her big lead. The others picked up their pace to about 17:10.

Tomescu was the bronze medalist in the 2005 World Championships. None of the followers are surprised to see her out there. But they must be calculating how they shoud react to her, and to each other. This is the Olympics, the best are at the front, the tension is mounting, and it doesn't get much better than this.

Tomescu's lead is up to 44 seconds. The tall Ethiopian in the pack--as tall as Radcliffe--is Berhane Adere, a 2:20:42 runner.

A little known Kenyan Martha Komu goes to the front of the pack. She has run just one marathon, a 2:25:33. Is Radcliffe struggling? Looks that way.

Catherine Ndereba's freaking me out. Why would anyone choose to run where she is? Must be her comfort zone. It's possible that she doesn't even know Tomescu has broken away. Looks like the Chinese will start working together now.

Tomescu leads by 56 seconds. Chunxia is at the front of the chase pack. Her teammate's not helping her.

Japan's Nakamura has lost contact as has Adere. The chase pack is beginning to splinter. Now the real contenders emerge.

Whoops, there's Catherine The Great, right on schedule.

Tomescu has 57 seconds at 30K. The chase pack is about 10 strong, including Radcliffe and Ndereba.

Two Chinese runners lead the chase pack. Radcliffe took a long drink, and is now at the back of the pack and working hard to stay with the pace.

The chase pack is now five or six, and Radcliffe not one of them. Two Chinese, Ndereba, a Russian, and Algerian, that might be it.

There's still almost 35 minutes left in the race. Radcliffe chasing after Salina Kosgei. But falling back, and definitely out of contention. Tomescu leads by 1:01.

The obvious veteran marathon observer pick is to say that Chunxia and Ndereba will haul in Tomescu in the last mile or so. But will they? That's why they run the race, so we can find out.

But they're not showing us the pack much.

There are a few more in the chase pack than I named before. Martha Komu still there from Kenya. The second Chinese is Zhu Xiaolin PR 2:23:57.

Tomescu by 1:10, it keeps growning. Pack is eight chasing. None of them breaking away to go after the leader. Lidia Simon Romania is one of them. Mara Yamauchi of Great Britain is interesting, she lives and trains in Japan with its similar humidity.

Tomescu just ran a 16:56, slowing, 5K. The chase group still has plenty of time.

They're at 22 miles now, and Tomescu leads by 1:10. That means, obviously, that the chase group has to gain more than 15 seconds / mile the rest of the way. For that, they might have to hope for a big Tomescu fade. It's the gap that matters now. We'll report it as much as we get info.

Several weeks ago Ndereba's coach said she wouldn't finish second again because of letting the leader get too far ahead. But she's in danger of just that.

Tomescu finished 20th at Athens. She missed last season with a tendon injury. Maybe that rest has given her the freshness she needs today?

There's about 17 minutes left in this race. No recent gaps to report. I hope they give us something soon. It's getting really critical to know. Wow, 1:28 according to the latest. She's going to win unless she totally falls apart.

You might remember Tomescu from the 2005 Chicago Marathon where she led Deena Kastor by a big margin much of the way, but then Kastor caught her in the last mile of a great battle. She's looking back more now, probably not believing the pack isn't on her heels. She needs to hold on for 14 minutes.

Martha Komu is the first to try to get going. The others are struggling to match her. They aren't showing much, Ndereba or Chunxia. Radcliffe has stopped, is stretching, seems to be limping, now running again. She should quit, but probably feels she can't after Athens.

Komu, Nderba, Chunxia and Xiaolin are left to give chase, but aren't exactly setting the world on fire.

Tomescu has less than 10 minutes to go. Chunxia now leading the chase. These four look more like they're running for silver than gold. Oh, Tomescu is starting to do the big hurt. She's going to lose ground for sure. How much?

Tomescu 2:19:07 at 40K. Chasers are a minute back. No hope unless she has to walk.

Tomescu approaching the Stadium. The cheering crowds will give her a nice lift. The chase group looks like they're simply trying to sort out silver and bronze. No one ever made a bold bid.

Tomescu will get to do a one and a quarter lap victory lap in the Stadium, with that big lead of hers.

The second Chinese looks the best of all. Has the whole way. But she never made a bid.

Tomescu's a good lesson in running form. It's not your form that wins medals, it's your leg turnover. Nothing else matters. She won't make great photos, but the gold medal will be just as sweet.

Ndereba and Chunxia for the silver. A nice race on the track. Ndereba edges her Chinese rival in a heated sprint to the tape.

It was only 20 seconds at the tape. Someone, not going to name anyone, let a gold medal get away from them today by simply not responding appropriately to Tomescu's expected breakaway. But can't take anything away from Tomescu. She ran her race. The others didn't run theirs.

Paula's going to finish. Good for her. Let's just hope she hasn't done herself any injury harm. Certainly the British press will have to support her as much for this brave effort as they slammed her four years ago. It's the first marathon she's ever finished where she didn't break the tape.